Helene Hardy Pierce Receives NRCA J.A. Piper Award

The National Roofing Contractors Association has announced Helene Hardy Pierce, vice president of technical services, codes and industry relations at GAF, Parsippany, N.J., is the 72nd recipient of its annual J.A. Piper Award. The award was presented at NRCA’s 132nd Annual Convention held Feb. 9-13 in Nashville. The J.A. Piper award is the industry’s most prestigious honor, recognizing roofing professionals who have devoted constant outstanding service to NRCA and the roofing industry.

Hardy Pierce, the first woman to earn the honor, serves on NRCA’s board of directors and is a member of NRCA’s Residential Contractor Committee, Roofing Day Task Force and Technical Operations Committee. She also has served as a Roofing Alliance student competition judge from 2015-19.

Hardy Pierce has been in the roofing industry for 38 years and has served on the board of directors for the Coalition for Procurement Reform; Roof Coatings Manufacturers Association, where she also served as president; Roof Consultants Institute Foundation; and Polyisocyanurate Insulation Manufacturers Association, where she also served as president.

She has been involved with numerous other roofing industry organizations, including the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association, ASTM International and SPRI.

“During her nearly four decades in the industry, she has seen an ebb and flow of people who understand what doesn’t change—the result of a lifetime of experience, trial and error and a long institutional memory,” said 2018 J.A. Piper Award winner Rob McNamara, president of F.J.A. Christiansen Roofing Co. Inc., a Tecta America company. “She has been a passionate advocate for our industry, and her contributions are endless—many of us here have benefited from her integrity, cutting-edge research, and valuable technical papers and presentations.”

“Those of you who know me know I believe we have a very kind industry with people who show up every day and solve problems, and it has only been a joy to be a part of it,” Hardy Pierce said when accepting the award. “Thank you very much, and I am beyond honored to receive this award from contractors who I respect so much.”

First presented in 1948, the J.A. Piper Award is named for former NRCA President Joseph A. Piper, whose extraordinary efforts kept the association alive during the Great Depression.

For more information, visit www.nrca.net.